Sweden's first female prime minister resigned 7 hours after taking office as her coalition fell apart


Magdalena Andersson in Stockholm, Sweden.Jessica Gow/TT News Agency/via REUTERS

Sweden elected its first-ever female prime minister on Wednesday. She resigned seven hours later as her coalition government fell apart.

Magdalena Andersson, the leader of Sweden's Social Democratic party, was elected prime minister by the country's parliament on Wednesday morning. Her first task was to get her budget plan through parliament that afternoon.

But a budget put forward by other opposing political parties passed instead, so the Greens, with whom her party had agreed to form a coalition government, left the government, the Associated Press reported.

Andersson then decided to quit.

Her time in office lasted seven hours, Politico and Sweden's Dagens Nyheter reported.

She told reporters on Wednesday afternoon, according to Politico: "I have met the speaker of parliament and asked to be relieved of my position as prime minister."

Politico noted that this follows convention in Sweden: The prime minister is expected to resign if the other party in their coalition government backs out.

Andersson said, according to the AP, that "a coalition government should resign if a party chooses to leave the government. Despite the fact that the parliamentary situation is unchanged, it needs to be tried again."

She could still become prime minister again, depending on what kind of government parliament now agrees to form.

Andersson said she told the speaker of parliament, per Politico: "I remain ready to be prime minister but for a Social Democratic single-party government."

Andersson previously served as Sweden's finance minister.

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